In integrated chip (IC) designs, hot-swapping refers to an ability of an IC interface to handle external interruptions, such as interruptions due to adding of a device to a bus on a fly. ICs supporting hot-swap require an output interface driving an output pin connected to a bus to be failsafe. In other words, the output interface shall not draw current from the output pin or the bus when a current or voltage supply to the output interface is down and the output pin is driven externally by another device connected to the bus.
ICs may employ low-voltage thin-film transistors with low voltage tolerance (e.g., 5V) for cost saving. These ICs are nonetheless expected to support legacy interfaces with high-voltage supplies (e.g., 10V). Other families of ICs, such as voltage supervisors, expect to its output interface to monitor and be driven by a wide-range high-voltage supply (e.g., 1.5V˜10V). Accordingly, there is a need for an IC interface design to withstand high-voltage applications and avoid voltage stress on its low-voltage thin-film transistors.